CHISINAU, February 13. /TASS/. Moldova is closing the Russian Cultural Center in the country, while Moscow’s ambassador to Chisinau said that Russia had no intention to escalate relations between the states after a drone crash in Moldova.
The Moldovan police said earlier that two drones crashed in the southern part of the country near the border with Ukraine overnight.
"In response to these provocations, the Foreign Ministry has decided to unilaterally terminate a 1998 Moldovan-Russian intergovernmental agreement on the establishment and operation of cultural centers. Once the agreement is annulled, the Russian Cultural Center will halt its activities in our country," the Moldovan Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
However, Russian Ambassador to Chisinau Oleg Ozerov said that Moscow saw no justification for relations between the two nations souring.
"Moldova is not a participant in the conflict. The Russian Federation has no intention of intensifying the situation in relations with the Republic of Moldova," the diplomat said after a visit to the Moldovan Foreign Ministry, where he was summoned urgently.
"All this necessitates further investigation and, consequently, additional details, which we hope we can gather to fully comprehend what truly happened."
The Russian embassy said that Moldova's decision to close the Russian House shows that the powers that be do not care about the interests and needs of the people.
"One thing is obvious - official Chisinau continues to escalate tensions and destroy traditional ties with our country. This cynical step points to the indifference of the current elites to the interests and needs of a large number of Moldovan people, including the younger generation, which is eager to study the Russian language, culture and history despite the growing anti-Russia sentiment," it said in a statement.
Relations between the two states began to deteriorate in 2021, when pro-European forces assumed power in Moldova. In 2023, Chisinau expelled dozens of Russian diplomats, and only one employee remained at the Russian Cultural Center.
Moldova’s largest opposition Party of Socialists of the Republic of Moldova (PSRM) said it will appeal the Foreign Ministry's decision to shut down the Russian Cultural Center.
"The PSRM will use all legal avenues, including parliamentary instruments and public protests, to oppose this provocative step. We will not allow the authorities to destroy the historical friendship between our peoples," the party said in a statement.
"The closure of the center is not only a hostile gesture towards Russia, but also a direct strike to hundreds of thousands of Moldovan citizens, for whom the Russian language, culture, and history of Russia are an integral part of their identity."
The party also demanded an end to the policy of confrontation with Russia, which goes against the interests of Moldova.
Moldova's parliament and government are controlled by the pro-Western Action and Solidarity Party.